Via Review.nl I got the chance to test the Imou Cruiser 2. Is the Imou Cruiser 2 recommended? A buying tip? This is it for sure! It has everything for a low price. Personally, I would omit the cloud service, but buy an NVR with it so that you decide for yourself what you can do with your images. In principle, the investment is larger, but it pays for itself quickly.
This security camera is equipped with a 5 megapixel (3K) camera and a resolution of 2688 x 1580 pixels. It is also a PTZ (Pan/Tilt/Zoom) camera, which means that it can rotate left, right, up and down. But zooming in is also possible with a whopping 8x digital zoom.
The price/quality ratio is top notch. For a low price you have a security camera that has it all. In addition to the camera providing a sharp image, there is a built-in floodlight and siren (110db). This does provide a deterrent effect when detecting movement, a person or vehicle. Because here too there is a distinction to be made in the settings. It is a pity that the camera can only offer 30 FPS. But considering the price, I really can't complain about this. The Cruiser 2 also has night vision. You can choose from full color, where the floodlight switches on when detected, where you can see in color. Or you can choose the infrared function, which displays a black and white image. And the third choice is the smart function, where the camera switches between infrared and full color.
Upon detection, you can set the Cruiser 2 to automatically turn on the floodlights. Then the camera follows every movement. If the person walks to the left, the camera follows obediently. However, it does not follow gradually but in leaps and bounds. This makes it seem a bit jerky. The fact that this camera can follow you is all due to the innovative Imou Sense. Imou indicates that this makes alarms 50% more accurate. It wouldn't go off from animals or falling leaves. However, with me the camera was already searching for passing flies. This could not be solved by adjusting the sensitivity, unfortunately. You may need the plus package in terms of cloud storage for this. But more on this later in the review.
You can connect the Imou Cruiser 2 via WiFi, but also via an Ethernet cable. Please note that when connecting to the WiFi network, you have the camera close to the router during installation. Otherwise, if the signal is weak, there is a chance that the camera cannot be added to the network. The installation was very easy. The Imou Life app is very clear, so the installation is self-explanatory. Simply press the +, scan a QR code and add the camera to your network. Child can do the laundry!
The design of the Cruiser 2 is ok. It is made of plastic, but built robustly. It has an IP66 rating making it completely dust and waterproof. This means you can use it both indoors and outdoors. Upon detection, you can say something to the attacker by means of a two-way conversation. Recorded images that the camera makes can be put on a Micro SD (up to 256GB) card. You can press this into the security camera. But you can also purchase a cloud service (or an Imou NVR (a network recorder) for about €85. The costs for the cloud service can be divided into a Basic and Plus package. The main differences between these packages are that the basic 7 days and the plus offers 30 days of cloud storage. But also that you get improved AI functionality with the plus variant. I personally find this strange, because Imou advertises this function as if it were a standard.
